window motor

My 98 Jimmy drivers power window is not working. I went to a supply shop and they asked with a regulator or without. Not a clue what they are talking about so here I am.

Correct, it is the mechanism the motor is attached to. They often get screwed up also. It could be that the motor is turning but the regulator is not moving.

Windows are too common a problem on cars. It would take just pennies to make them more reliable.

Still no idea what the regulator is. Is it what I would call the gear box. When I think of a regulator I think electrical.

It is not the switch.

Any details to support your statement Ed? What does an Engineering Change cost?

Thx

I know a motor cost around $60 and with a regulator it is $120.

Many things on these Jimmy's could be made more reliable. I would start with wheel bearing hubs.

There should not be an engineering change it should have been engineered a bit beefier from the start. Take a look at a bunch of failed units and see what is broken and think about how cheaply it could have been made with heavier material, such as the cable. If you need samples, I have three of them from two different cars, all the same failure. Let's see, three of eight failed the same way. What could be the problem?

When you build millions of cars a year, pennies sure add up to big bucks. Car makers (not just GM) want to use minimal material even if there will be a certain number of failures down the road. They figure that after 4 or 5 years the customer will just repair it for $200, but GM saved $18,000,000

I agree with you many things on a car could and should be built better.

But I remember the day when 4-5 years would bring time to replace the entire car, not a few parts. The old saying was they build them to last 5 years so you must buy a new one.

simply the mechanical side of the operation. weather it be scissor jack or cable..............kjun

They have been a traditional problem on GM cars, I believe, as the car ages a bit.

I don't seem to see the same on Fords or Dodges, at least not as severely.

True. You don't see this problem as often on say, Toyotas or Lexus. They would not tolerate a supplier / design providing a part that was underdesigned and failed as often as it appears that the GM units have a habit of doing.

i find it strange the toyota and other jap dealers have service departments, must be like the maytag men. could save a lot of money. had my pontiac in for oil change other day service bays had two toyotas, and a honda, and one buick.

Well, Toyota's are gifts from God Himself, so why would they break down? Hope you can speak Japanese...

Don't get me wrong, I own two Oldsmobiles!

But....I just finished replacing a wiper motor assembly on a 98 GM van, and the local parts store had the part! This tells me a few things: A) They are failing enough to stock the part and make money selling them, and B) On the other hand its good to have parts so readily available. I also just replaced both front hub/wheel bearings...but the transmission has not been touched and the vehicle has 140k on it. Of course I did have to have the intake manifold gasket replaced, which should have been a recall... Overall its been good on drivetrain but bad on other things like interior bits, interior fit and finish, the power door quit working and gave up trying to diagnose, rear window vents work sometimes, sometimes only one works, etc. The good part of my GM cars is that I buy used, and with the poor resale value you can get a great value on a vehicle with a lot of life left in it.

Scott

Which models, if you don't mind me asking?

No offence, but if that is your major complaint, then I don't know what to say. Parts stores are supposed to have the part you want. Are you telling me if you walked into a Toyota parts store, and they didn't have your part, you would walk out saying "wow, I'm so glad they didn't have my part, 'cause it means they don't break down much"?

That I will agree with. I recently had a gasket job done in an '01 Montana. $1100 (Canadian) for the repair...Then again, it also has well over

200,000KM's on it.

I only had those kind of problems on my '91 Grand Prix. The main reason was I had a tendency to beat the crap out of the car. Either way, not once did I have any major problems with the door locks or power windows. It did have several different shades of burgundy though!

It just gives me more reason not to by a Japanese car. ;)

I have a 98 Olds Silo GLS van, extended with about every option including rear AC, rear audio entertainment, middle row captain chairs, trac control, auto leveling, leather, etc. Bought used for $11k which was good deal and we've used it quite a bit and its been a good vehicle besides the intake gasket.

I also have a '00 Intrigue GLS with the 3.5 short star motor. Its also loaded and has the PCS stability control system, 4 wheel disks, leather, bose, dual climate, sunroof, chrome wheels, etc. I got that on Ebay for $5k with 90k road miles. Wife loves heated seats and it is quiet and the motor and transmission work very well - great powertrain.

It was a local O'Riley autoparts store. I figured it was one of those freak things where I'd have to go to a junk yard or the dealer to replace it, but apparently enough fail that they stock them in new and rebuilt. Guy at the store said they seem to be a weak point as he gets his share of customers buying them. I had a '65 and '70 Nova and my sister had a '65 LeMans, My parents had a variety of cars mostly GM but including a '70 Toyota and a '84 Mazda pickup. Over years and years of car ownership we never had a wiper system fail before this, but they were the older design - so go figure.

Also, from doing due dilligiance on the Intrigue, I couldn't help but notice that for years the vehicle was produced with alternators that flickered the lights, but GM did not address this for a long time. My dad also owned 3 1980s/early 90's SSE Bonnevilles and he just about had to keep a spare alternator in the trunk, they were junk for years and GM just ignored it. Must have been the bean counters not the engineers, but hard to keep customers happy when the same part keeps failing...

Its not just GM though, my since departed '95 Ram PU blew a speedo/odo unit and power door lock mech right before I sold it, lightening my wallet considerably even just for parts. Not to mention the tire that egg shaped as I was marketing it....

GM cars are good for driving the crap out of, they seem to get to a point of wear but then go for a long time before actually going over the edge. When you do get an import up in miles, the parts and difficulty working on some of them makes them a losing proposition. But the lines are blurring with US plants and US designed import vehicles...

I have liked the Intrigue's since I saw one back in '98. I was actually looking to buy one, but I found my '96 Bonnie first.

I guess it depends on where you go, too. I went to a Napa (if memory serves) once for a module for one of my cars. A Cutlass Supreme, IIRC. The guy checked the computer, walked into the back, brought it out and blew the dust off it. Said it had been there quite a few years.

I owned a 1990 and 1991 Bonnie SSE, a 1996 Bonnie SE and now have a 1996 Bonnie SSEi. All of them did the 'flicker'. Never replaced an alternator on any of them though. *touches wood*. If memory serves, I solved it on the '96 SE by cleaning the battery/alternator cables.

Those dash boards are expensive as sin. I had to replace one in the 1990 Bonnie. Well, the dash worked fine (Odo, spedo, ect), but the little computer's that gave Driver Info and a digital Compass didn't. I thought they were neat, so I paid $200 (IIRC) for a used one.

I drive the crap out of my cars, and I always have. The car that took the most was a 1991 Grand Prix. By time I scraped it with well something like

350,000 on it, it had more dents in it then I could have counted. Not to mention the multi-colored exterior...all burgundy, just different 'versions' of it...But, she drove all the way to the junk yard, and out ran my then-new-car '97 Olds Cutlass Supreme. Oh the cars we miss...